


Biting the Bullet

by jeien



Category: Sound Horizon
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Professors, M/M, Tettere still has questionable taste in sexual attraction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-02
Updated: 2015-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-18 15:00:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4710194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeien/pseuds/jeien
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Elefseus decides to take one for the team so that the students and faculty in the building don't have to deal with the consequences of Tettere's chemical experiments every morning. </p><p>(For the AU-fill request: "it was the 10th time Tettere tried to make poison in the ochem lab and Elef was not gonna have it anymore")</p>
            </blockquote>





	Biting the Bullet

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my darling [Kizu](http://aloha-baltan.tumblr.com/) for filling my AU request with the aforementioned summary. It was too good to pass up.

Elef really needed to talk with the university administration about changing his classroom location. Sure, he’s previously had classroom assignments in the humanities building, the arts building, the psychology building—but why the hell did they put his Introduction to Classic Literature course in the science building?!

While his upbringing did ensure he had the nerves of steel to wave off the crashing of equipment, screaming about something dangerous spilling onto the floor (or, at one point, onto a _student_ ), random objects launching themselves into the door, and the occasional fire from the neighboring classrooms down the hall, Elef doubted that he could ever get used to the smell of chemicals wafting in.

Speaking of smells, though…

He dropped his things off at the lecture hall, confident that no one will touch them after what happened _last time_ , and wandered down the stairs to the basement floor where the chemistry labs were. The first door to the left—the lab specifically used for organic chemistry—was ajar.

Elef clicked his tongue and stormed into the room. “Tettere!”

“Oh, Elef!” Tettere exclaimed, red-handedly holding two beakers of… something Elef didn’t really want to know (although what he _does_ know is that they smelled potentially lethal). “What a surprise! I wasn’t expecting you to come down.”

“Surprise nothing,” Elef snaps back. “This is already the tenth time I’ve been here, catching you doing whatever diabolical thing you’re doing that involves… that! I don’t know what exactly it is, but stop trying to poison the entire building!”

“Aw, but I just discovered this particular reaction yesterday…”

Elef resisted the urge to punch his colleague in the face. Instead, he exasperatedly pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t even know how they managed to hire you, much less give you tenure.”

Tettere hummed a cheerful note before replying, “It’s because I’m good at what I do! Also, I can sub for a few criminal justice classes so I’m like a two-for-one deal!”

“Too bad you’re too high on the upkeep. And will you put those down already?!” He took the beakers from the chemistry teacher’s hands and set them down in the sink behind him, making sure to drain the contents first and ignoring the offended yelp from the blond’s lips. Elef shuddered as he washed his hands afterwards—even the act of touching the things made him uncomfortable.

“Elef’s such a killjoy,” Tettere whined. “How am I supposed to have some fun now?”

“You could—I dunno—do something _normal_ that _doesn’t_ result in a building evacuation,” Elef suggested. He really would like at least one week of interrupted class time. He’s had to revise the syllabus schedule every session because of these constant disruptions and it’s getting increasingly difficult for his students to find their rhythm when it comes to assignments. “You’re popular, aren’t you? Go spice up your love life or something.”

“That’s what I’m trying to do,” came the sing-song reply. Elef only offered a pointed stare.

“Tettere, you’ve been trying to make poisons in the organic chemistry lab for ten sessions in a row since the semester began.”

“I know.”

“How was that relevant to your love li…”

Tettere smiled. “I take it you catch my drift now?”

“…Dear lord.”

“But,” his colleague said with a laugh—and the dangerous lilt didn’t escape Elef’s ears one bit, “if you’re so insistent I leave my toys behind, then perhaps you can help occupy my hours in these mornings to ensure that I don’t misbehave.”

“And how are you proposing I help with that?” Elef was starting to regret asking the question—even though he figured that it would probably yield favorable long-term results—when Tettere started to hum in mock-thought.

“Breakfast dates?”

The regret immediately sank in.

“You want a date.”

“I suppose you could call it a morning outing between colleagues, but breakfast date sounds so much more pleasing, doesn’t it?” Tettere took the opportunity to flip his hair in his usual display of vanity before having the audacity to _wink at him_. “And we’ll have plenty of mornings to ourselves, won’t we? After all, you’re on campus every day except Fridays and the weekends up until noon.”

 _Think of the students_ , Elef urged himself, _You’re doing this for them_. In fact, he was doing the entire university a favor—hell, maybe even the entire community. (Who knows how many fire fighters he would spare from the trouble of coming to campus only to find out it was the same idiot professor who set off the alarm?) If going to these outings will stop Tettere from causing any form of collateral damage, then Elef will gladly take one for the team.

“Fine.”

“Excellent,” Tettere exclaimed, clapping his hands together cheerfully. Some of the organic chemistry students were starting to filter in and the hands on the clock noted that it would be ten minutes until the next class block. “Oh, you’d probably want to go before your students wonder where you are. I won’t keep you any longer.”

“Yeah, uh, sure. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“I very much look forward to our date, Professor~!”

Elef was already halfway out the door when he heard the damning call and, determined to get the last say, cried out _It’s not a date_! before storming upstairs to the lecture hall, trying to force down the pink on his cheeks.

(Of course, he didn’t see Tettere turn to wink at his students and tell them, “It’s totally a date.”)


End file.
